A matriarch’s passing has a message for us all

The passing of a family member can rock a person’s very foundation, even when that ultimate end is expected.

One of the village’s most prominent families – the Hursts – lost their matriarch last week.

Shirley Moyer Hurst died calmly and quietly Thursday, Aug. 9, at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse. She had lived to the ripe old age of 87.

Born in Buffalo, Shirley had lived in Liverpool for 80 years. For 69 of those years she was married to Ken Hurst, one of our best-known and best-loved village advocates.

Just as Kenny devotes much of his time and energy to American Legion Post 188 and the Willow Museum, Shirley taught Sunday school at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and was a member of Post 188’s Ladies Auxiliary and the Historical Association of Greater Liverpool.

Although Shirley lived a good long life, her death still leaves the family with a deep sense of loss.

In a message of condolence posted at Maurer Funeral Home’s website, two friends of Shirley’s daughter, Sally Senecal, eloquently summarized the situation. While directed specifically to Hurst family members including Shirley’s eight grandchildren and four great grandchildren, the words written by Rick and Donna Pinckney could apply to anyone who has lost a loved one:

“What moves through us when a loved one passes is a silence, a quiet sadness, a longing for one more day, one more word, one more touch, but little by little we begin to remember not just that they died, but that they lived. And that their lives gave us memories too beautiful to forget.

“It will be the little things that you will remember, the quiet moments, the smiles, the laughter. And although it may seem hard right now, it will be the memories of these little things that help to push away the pain and bring the smiles back again.

“With deepest sympathy, Rick & Donna.”

Tillotson service Aug. 24

Speaking of the dearly departed, the memorial service for the late Floyd Tillotson — the former mayor of Liverpool, 1977-1981 — will to be conducted on Friday, Aug. 24, at Maurer Funeral Home in the village. Visitation will begin at 4 p.m. and will be concluded by a brief service at 6 p.m.

Tillotson, 87, died July 11, at his daughter’s home in Brownsville, Kentucky.

Orleans co-founder dies

Guitarist Larry Hoppen — who performed at Johnson Park on June 20, 2011, as part of the band Orleans — died July 24 in Florida. He was 61. The cause of his death remains unknown.

Hoppen grew up in Greenport, N.Y., graduated from Ithaca College in 1971, lived in Woodstock for 28 years, and was living in Florida at the time of his death.

In 1972, Hoppen co-founded Orleans which recorded hit songs such as “Dance with Me” and “Still the One.” The band’s appearance here last year marked the first time the Liverpool Is The Place Committee booked a national act as part of its summer concert series at Johnson Park.

Longtime LITP program director Mike Casale befriended Larry and Lance Hoppen when he hired them in the fall of 2009 to play a benefit concert at the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. That performance raised $7,500 for the Spina Bifida Center at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital.

Hoppen’s family hopes to keep the good vibes alive.

“Since Larry’s passion was feeding hungry people,” said Hoppen’s widow, Patricia Smith Hoppen, “his friends and fans can honor his memory by making a contribution to their local food bank in his name.”

Liverpool Is The Place hosts its annual John Denver Memorial Food Drive Concert featuring folksingers Alan Taylor and Two Feet Short at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 22, at Johnson Park. Concert goers are asked to donate a non-perishable food item to be delivered to the St. Joseph’s Food Pantry.

Shine on brightly

By the way, did you notice that the village looks a little brighter now at night?

That’s because on the evening of Monday, Aug. 6, Mary Kay Manns flipped the switch on the spotlights in the faux lighthouse atop her new White Water Pub, at 110 S. Willow St.

So next time you stop in for a cold one, don’t forget to bring your shades.